Geth Plasma Shotgun
The Geth Plasma Shotgun is a shotgun in Mass Effect 2. In-Game Description This three-barrelled geth weapon fires miniature but potent cluster rounds of superconducting projectiles and has a longer range than standard shotguns. A two-stage trigger system allows for either quick fire-capacitors or a charge-and-release attack to electrify the projectiles as they exit the weapon. As the rounds hit the target, they fragment and electricity arcs between the pieces, flash-converting the air to conductive plasma. The resulting impact, heat, and electrical charge overloads shields and barriers and causes massive trauma to unarmored targets. Acquisition Available through purchase of the Firepower Pack DLC. Squad Use This weapon can be used by Grunt, Jack, Jacob and Tali. E-Mail from the Illusive Man Player Notes ;General *This weapon fires 3 plasma balls instead of the standard 8 pellets. Also it should be noted that hitting the same target with second and third plasma ball does 30% of its base damage. Thus hitting a target with all 3 plasma balls while fully charged, does 556.4 base damage instead of the expected 1043. Still, that is the highest damage per shot of all non-heavy weapons. If possible, one should maximize overall damage by hitting multiple targets with one shot. Hitting at least 2 targets will always do more overall damage than hitting a single target with all 3 pellets. *If fired in "aim" mode, the plasma projectiles will home in on enemies. This ability significantly increases the gun's usefulness at range. *When charged up, the shotgun will expend two ammo instead of the normal one. Despite this, a charged shot can still be fired with only one ammo remaining in the thermal clip, with no apparent drawbacks (with an additional auto-reload.) *The Geth shotgun can't be charged up while in cover, making the gun more suited to run and gun style tactics. *The gun's plasma projectile has inferior stopping power relative to other shotguns making it less effective when attempting to hold off charging enemies since enemies who would be staggered by other shotguns will still be able to counterattack. *It is possible to fire 2 normal shots in rapid succession. This can be done by pressing and holding fire till the gun just begins charging, and immediately releasing to fire the first shot, and quickly firing again to fire the second shot. Although this doesn't necessarily increase your DPS (due to the charging phase), it is very effective when used with Adrenaline Rush. A Soldier with Shock Trooper specialization can fire up to 3 shots in a single Hardened Adrenaline rush using this technique. *While releasing an overcharged shot, its advisable to perform a melee attack simultaneously. This way a quick followup shot can be fired as soon as the melee animation ends. *When used in conjunction with damage-increasing armor parts (notably the Kestrel Armor), a fully charged shot from the Geth Plasma Shotgun easily becomes a one-shot kill weapon against all enemies except for krogan and sub-boss enemies even on Insanity. *A useful tactic against heavily fortified enemies such as krogan, Heavies, and other equally problematic foes is to unleash a fully charged shot on your target and quickly follow it up with any damage inflicting powers your squadmates have. This will allow you to tear down their defenses and have your allies quickly dispatch them before they can get a shot off. This keeps you from sustaining too much damage since you can't take cover while charging and has proven invaluable on harder difficulties, especially insanity. *If the shotgun is held charged and the player starts sprinting, releasing the fire button while sprinting will cause the gun to release the shot without Shepard stopping from sprinting. *Squadmates using the Geth Plasma Shotgun will not charge their shots. *If the gun is fully charged and the player opens the Power Wheel or Weapon Switch Wheel, the shot is automatically discharged. *When fully upgraded with shield penetration and damage upgrades, and fully powered Disruptor or Warp Ammmo, the Plasma Shotgun can tear through shields and barriers with great ease. Because of its accuracy, this can be done at relatively safe distances so that you can switch weapons for when the enemy enters optimum range. *Unlike other weapons which are charged (namely Heavy Weapons) which as soon as the charge is complete, they fire; the charge can be "held" on the Geth Plasma Shotgun, by simply continuing to hold down the trigger button (or key), and unleashed at the player's discretion. Thus, the gun can be charged while standing behind a tall piece of cover (such as a wall, or stack of crates), then emerge and let go of the trigger button once a target is located. ;Class specific *When used in concert with an Infiltrator's Tactical Cloak (especially the Assassination variant), a charged shot from the Geth Plasma Shotgun will decimate powerful foes even on Insanity. This provides a compelling reason for Infiltrators who have not previously done so to at least consider choosing shotgun proficiency aboard the Collector Ship. Some care must be taken when charging the weapon to properly use it alongside the Cloak. First, begin charging the weapon, then activate the Cloak while the weapon is charging. Otherwise, if you cloak, then begin charging, the cloak will drop. It's best to have tactical cloak hotkeyed for this trick. To avoid taking damage, in the second between charging and cloaking, find a tall piece of cover, such as a pillar, stack of crates or wall to hide behind. *The Vanguard's Charge does not reset the overcharge, making it possible to release the overcharged shot right after impact. *Giving the Plasma Shotgun to a squadmate necessitates a change in squad tactics. Since allies do not fire the shotgun very quickly and do not overcharge, they need to be repositioned on a battlefield normally suited to mid or long range combat, since the shotgun is generally not as effective at close quarters. Trivia *The Geth Plasma Shotgun was designed to be an "unshotgun," allowing players to reliably deal damage at longer ranges than normally allowed. Wanting to preserve the "heavy hitting" aspect of shotguns, the overcharge ability was added to compensate for its lessened effectiveness at shorter range.Christina Norman's blog Secrets of the Firepower Pack References See also *Shotguns *Geth Pulse Rifle Category:Equipment Category:Combat Category:Mass Effect 2 Category:Weapons Category:DLC Category:Shotguns